All Stories by Amy McDermott
- Life
Lichens are an early warning system for forest health
Lichens, fascinating mosaics of fungi and algae or cyanobacteria, are made for sensing environmental change.
- Oceans
Reef rehab could help threatened corals make a comeback
Reefs are under threat from rising ocean temperatures. Directed spawning, microfragmenting and selective breeding may help.
- Genetics
Endurance training leaves no memory in muscles
Unlike strength training, endurance workouts left no genetic trace months later, calling into question idea of a general muscle memory.
- Animals
Sandboxes keep chicken parasites at bay
Fluffing feathers in sand and dust prevents severe mite infections in cage-free hens.
- Life
California’s goby is actually two different fish
One fish, two fish: California’s tidewater goby is two species.
- Health & Medicine
Bacterial weaponry that causes stillbirth revealed
Vaginal bacteria may cause stillbirth by deploying tiny weapons
- Animals
For snowy owls, wintering on the prairie might be normal
Some snowy owls leave the Arctic for winter. That’s not a desperate move, new study says.
- Genetics
Ancient reptiles saw red before turning red
The discovery that birds and turtles share a gene tied to both color vision and red coloration is more evidence that dinosaurs probably saw the color red — and perhaps were even red, too.
- Animals
Getting rid of snails is effective at stopping snail fever
For the tropical disease snail fever, managing host populations is more effective than drugs.
- Genetics
Evolution of gut bacteria tracks splits in primate species
Primates and microbes have been splitting in sync for at least 10 million years.
- Anthropology
Two groups spread early agriculture
The Fertile Crescent was a diverse place. Multiple cultures were involved in the dawn of farming.
- Anthropology
Earliest evidence of monkeys’ use of stone tools found
600- to 700-year-old nut-cracking stones from Brazil are earliest evidence that monkeys used tools.
